


Nightmares

by GreyMichaela



Series: One-Shots [4]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Gabriel lost his mojo when Lucifer took him out, M/M, Sam is a Sweetheart, Set post-Elysian Fields, Tumblr Prompt, and deserves so much better than he's gotten, and he doesn't like being human, he's basically human now, yes I am aware that I tortured him horribly just recently, ~wraps Sam in a blanket and hisses at the world~
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-14
Updated: 2014-09-14
Packaged: 2018-02-17 10:22:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,397
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2306282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GreyMichaela/pseuds/GreyMichaela
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sam can't sleep.  Gabriel is kept awake by his pacing and takes matters into his own hands.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Nightmares

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a lovely nonnie on Tumblr who requested a happy fic involving Sam being tortured by memories/nightmares of his time in hell, and Gabriel comforting him. (Because I apparently broke everyone with the latest chapter of Listen. Oops? Here, maybe this will help.)
> 
> In my defense, you can't ask me for a story involving nightmares and hell and expect it to be 100% happy/fluffy. :-P

It took a while for Gabriel to settle into life in the bunker.  He wasn’t used to being human, and it was immensely frustrating to him.  A frustrated Gabriel was a snappish Gabriel, and Dean and Castiel took to ducking around corners when they saw him stalking down the hall.

Sam, though…Sam never avoided him.  When Gabriel walked into a room where the lanky hunter was, Sam would invariably put down his book or research or the weapon he was cleaning and greet Gabriel with a quiet smile.

He never asked questions, never bothered Gabriel with irritating comments about how he was “adjusting” to his new life.  Instead he asked him if he needed anything, made him breakfast (and never forgot the strawberry syrup), and most importantly, never took offense when Gabriel snarled.

Sam was…peaceful.  Undemanding. Gabriel took to spending more and more time with him, while Dean and Castiel still tiptoed around him and tried not to say anything that would irritate Gabriel further.

~~~

Gabriel walked into the library and his heart lifted to see Sam sitting on the overstuffed sofa in the corner.

“Whatcha doing?” he asked, collapsing on the other end and stretching his legs out in front of him.

Sam lifted the book.  “Pretty sure I’m reading.” His tone was amused, and Gabriel grinned at him.

Sam set his book on his lap and yawned, rubbing his face.  His skin was sallow and there were dark circles under his eyes.

“Okay there?” Gabriel inquired.

“Tired,” Sam admitted.

“You’re not getting much sleep these days, are you?” Gabriel asked. His bedroom was right next door to Sam’s and he’d been woken by Sam’s pacing on more than one night.

Sam’s mouth tightened.  “I’m fine.” He ruined this with another yawn.

“Sure you are,” Gabriel said.  He shuffled around on the couch until he was in a position to put his head in Sam’s lap, wriggling until he was comfortable.  Finally he relaxed with a contented sigh and realized that Sam was stone-still above him. Gabriel glanced up.

“Problems?” he asked.

“Other than the fact that you’ve got your head in my lap?” Sam said. “Nope, no problems.”

“Good,” Gabriel said.  “Now shut up. Your pacing kept me awake most of the night and I’m exhausted.”

He closed his eyes and was asleep almost immediately.

 

He wasn’t sure what woke him, so he lay still and assessed.  Sam must have fallen asleep somewhere in there too, because his leg was relaxed under Gabriel’s head, his hand resting on Gabriel’s chest with fingers loosely curled.

Sam’s thigh under his cheek went rigid and Gabriel opened his eyes, alarmed. Sam’s head had fallen back against the back of the sofa, and his mouth was pulled into a tight, unhappy line.

“No,” he whispered.  “Please…no…”

Gabriel sat up, biting his lip, unsure what to do.

Sam shook his head, squeezing his eyes tighter shut, and a small whimper fell from his lips.  “ _Please…_ ”

A surge of startlingly protective fury roared through Gabriel. He’d never regretted the loss of his powers more than in that moment, and he ground his teeth, unsure what to do. If he shook Sam awake, it could make things worse.  But he couldn’t watch Sam suffer, either.

Sam solved his dilemma by starting upright with a gasp, eyes wild. He glanced at Gabriel and slumped back against the sofa, sighing.

“No wonder you haven’t been sleeping,” Gabriel said.

“I don’t want to talk about it,” Sam said, closing his eyes.

“Look, I am all for bottling up your emotions and drinking the pain away,” Gabriel said, “But you need sleep, kiddo, and possibly someone to listen to you.”

Sam opened his eyes and glared at him.  “I don’t want to _talk_ about it,” he snapped. He pushed himself to his feet and stalked away, back rigid.

Gabriel watched him go, gnawing on his bottom lip.  What was he supposed to do?

 

Sam avoided him for the rest of the day and Gabriel didn’t pursue it. Instead he hunted Dean down in the firing range and spent a satisfying hour criticizing everything Dean did, until the taller man threatened to shoot _him._

 

That night, Gabriel curled up in bed, ears pricked for any noises in the bedroom next to his. They shared a wall and although Gabriel hadn’t actually been inside Sam’s room, he was pretty sure Sam’s bed was only a few inches away from his through the plaster and concrete.

He dropped into an uneasy sleep around midnight, when Sam’s room stayed utterly silent.

Around two am, Gabriel sat bolt upright.  He’d heard…what had he heard?

A muffled moan came through the wall and Gabriel set his jaw.  No.  He was _not_ going to sit by and listen to the kid suffer. He stood up and stalked out of his room, easing Sam’s door open by inches.

Sam was on his back, head tossing on his pillow, features drawn in misery.

“Please, stop,” he sobbed, and Gabriel’s heart broke.

He was moving before he could think better of it, crawling into Sam’s bed and wrapping himself around Sam’s long body like a particularly clingy octopus.

“I’m here,” he whispered.  “You’re safe, Sam. You’re _safe._ You’re not in hell anymore, kiddo.”

Sam went utterly still in his arms and then he was wrapping his arms around Gabriel in return, pressing his face against Gabriel’s throat with a choked noise that ripped through the angel’s heart.

“Thank you,” Sam managed.  “Oh, thank you…”

Gabriel kissed the top of Sam’s head, throttling back the rage at Lucifer that threatened to consume him.  “I’ve got you,” he murmured.  “Sleep now.”

Sam’s body went limp, his face still buried in the crook of Gabriel’s neck, and Gabriel lay still, his cheek resting on Sam’s silky hair.

When he woke up, it was to Sam’s face inches from his own, green-gold eyes regarding him gravely.

Gabriel started back, nearly falling off the narrow bed, and Sam’s eyes creased in amusement.

“Sorry,” he said, not sounding particularly remorseful.

Gabriel stretched and yawned.  He’d slept better than he had in weeks and he felt lazily content, pleased with the world in general.

“Sleep okay?” he asked.

Sam hummed, scooting a little closer.  Gabriel froze as Sam’s nose brushed the sensitive skin under his jaw.

“Sam…” he managed.  “What…”

Sam pulled away a little, meeting his eyes.  “Shut up,” he growled.

Gabriel swallowed hard and closed his mouth.  Sam looked dangerous, predatory, and Gabriel suddenly felt like the prey.

So why wasn’t he afraid?

Sam leaned back in, nosing at Gabriel’s throat, and his tongue darted out, tasting Gabriel’s skin.

Gabriel jerked.  “Sam,” he said, clenching his fists.  “You don’t…you don’t owe me anything.”

Sam lifted his head, surprise and amusement on his face.  “Please,” he said.  “You think I don’t know that?  Anything you do is purely for your own benefit; everyone else can go hang. Am I right?”

“Something like that,” Gabriel said ruefully.

“And you climbing in bed with me was purely out of selfish reasons on your part, wasn’t it?” Sam continued.  “Because I’ve been keeping you awake lately.”

“Sure, let’s go with that,” Gabriel said.

“Fine,” Sam said, his face innocent.  “Then when I do _this…_ ” He planted a soft kiss on the line of Gabriel’s jaw. “It’s for my own benefit. And _this…”_ He shifted position and pulled Gabriel closer, pulling Gabriel’s earlobe between his teeth and biting down lightly.

Gabriel jerked and an embarrassing noise fell from his lips that he’d deny to his dying day.

“That’s for me too,” Sam whispered.  His eyes were hot, looking at Gabriel as if he was a feast. 

“I just don’t want you doing this for the wrong reasons,” Gabriel managed after a few throat-clearings.

Sam’s lips quirked up.  “I’ve wanted to do this for months,” he growled.  “Possibly years. So shut up, would you?”

Gabriel sighed and gave up.

Sam’s eyes glinted and he leaned in.  “That’s more like it,” he whispered, and then they were kissing properly for the first time and it had never felt so right, so comfortable and terrifying and exciting all at the same time, and Gabriel thought it was a little like the flying he missed so much, swoops and thrills and all he could think as Sam’s mouth devoured his was that he wanted _more._


End file.
